Apodyopsis
by KoreNestis
Summary: Apodyopsis- The act of mentally undressing someone. Cole x Inquisitor, dislike it, don't read it. Could possibly include future smut.


_A/N: I was giggling the entire time I wrote this, though that could have also been due to the Red Bull and coffee. My brain seems to write better under the influence of my two favorite drugs: caffeine and music. Enjoy, you naughty nonny. 3  
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Ellayria shook her head for what was perhaps the thousandth time, trying to purge the thoughts from her brain. _'You are horrible,'_ she said bitterly to herself. Here they were, the Inquisitor, Cassandra, Cole, and Dorian, hunting Venatori agents in the Hinterlands, and her eyes couldn't help wandering. She felt dirty, regardless of the justifications she tried telling herself.

Cole was more human now, it was true. They had been close for some time, but eventually, close became…_close. _It had all occurred so naturally, she did not realize fully what was going on until it was too late; her smiling brightly at the blond boy as they were sitting together in the garden, her showing him the various plants and their uses. He had been staring at her in an odd manner for some time. Well, to others, a lot of what Cole did was odd, but she had come to understand a good portion of his habits, and could usually read most of his facial expressions. If there was something she _didn't _understand, she would ask him about it. Everything he said and did fascinated her, and she couldn't deny their similarities. She had always been the outcast in her clan, even as their Keeper's first, though she had tried to be kind to everyone she met. She simply stuck out; it couldn't be helped. And after the spirit boy had helped her escape the Envy Demon's clutches, she was fiercely protective of him.

"If we'll be lonely, we should be lonely together," she had suggested timidly when he had appeared in Haven, not long after her and her wearied party had trudged back from Therinfall Redoubt. That was the first time she saw his gap toothed smile as he peeked at her shyly through his almost white-blond hair. She knew then that she would not let any harm come this gentle soul.

After they had found their way to Skyhold, Vivienne had told her she should get rid of 'it,' the normally quiet elven mage snapped. "Don't you dare call him an it," she'd spat with venom. Everyone around, Vivienne included, were wide eyed and open mouthed. "He is not going anywhere unless he wishes to." She'd stormed off, and since then, she rarely saw the ebony skinned Madame de Fer. She felt guilty and wanted to apologize, but she did not want Vivienne to believe she had withdrawn her stance.

She had been dwelling on that the day in the garden, her heart heavy, when her dearest friend quietly slipped his hand in hers, their fingers intertwining. This was something they had started some time ago, not long after he had become more human, but it still lifted her mood; she stared down his pale, slender fingers, partially hidden beneath the bandages he wore. They were surprisingly rough from wielding daggers in battle. "She forgave you," she heard him whisper, and looked up. As always, she was swimming in those crystal clear blue eyes of his, which were forever sincere and full of compassion. He spoke again. "She hurt. But she saw you were happy, and understood."

Ellayria released a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding in. "Praise the Creators," she replied with a smile. Then saw that that strange look was on his face again, the one that seemed as though he were contemplating something very seriously, the one that made her face burn and her heart skip a beat. She looked away for a moment, to attempt to regain her composure, and turned back those blue eyes staring deep into hers. Then they were hidden beneath his eyelids, and his warm lips were against her own. His hands were rough, but his lips were _soft_, soft and earnest like the man who possessed them. She found herself mimicking him, her eyes closing as she leaned in, and for several blissful moments, nothing else existed. Corypheus was gone, there had been no hole in the sky, there was simply _them. _And that was all that mattered to her then.

After months of gentle kisses and snuggling together (Cole had finally begun to sleep, and it was some of their happiest moments together), Ellayria found that her blood raced for…another reason. Their relationship had been quite innocent, until recently. Cole joyfully showed off his new armor to her, grinning widely beneath his wide brimmed hat, and that's when she seemed to truly _see _him. He wore tight ram leather, dyed a deep indigo, carefully crafted for protection but not to hinder speed, and she couldn't help but notice how it accentuated his broad shoulders and narrow hips. His body was lean, but his arms were muscled, and she could tell from his exposed collarbone that his chest was sculpted, if only lightly. He was a man in her eyes, and it struck her powerfully in that moment. Her gaze was roaming when she jerked back to reality and looked up. His head was cocked to the side curiously, and he smiled again. "So you like it?" he asked. His smile only grew as she sputtered, her face on fire, and ran like red templars were on her heels.

'_He is _not _as naïve as he used to be,' _she thought, slightly horrified at herself. She kept pushing the dirtiness away, but she continually found herself daydreaming as she watched him. _'I shouldn't be thinking about him like this,'_ was repeated in her mind, over and over, and yet, the scene would play in her mind. She could see that slender but powerful chest, pale in the candlelight, as he held her to him, kissing along his shoulder, trailing a path in between his rosy nipples, hearing his light gasp and feeling those deadly fingers thread their way through her mahogany colored hair. Lower and lower her lips would go as she unbuckled his belt, unbuttoned his trousers…

A soft laugh pulled her back, like the tinkling of bells. She glanced guiltily back; the very man she had been imagining was looking serenely off into the distance, watching a flock of birds talk to one another in a nearby tree. Dorian had just told a joke to all of them, Ellayria realized as Cassandra made a general noise of disgust and continued walking. The Inquisitor's chest bubbled with hope. _'So he was laughing at the joke…?'_

That blond head whipped around at her direction, and she received a shockingly sly smile. His eyes twinkled with recognition, and she covered her face with her hand.

'_Damn mind reader…'_ She swore her death would not be at the hands of Corypheus, but of embarrassment.


End file.
